STEERING ARRANGEMENT FOR WHEELED CONVEYANCE

Abstract: A wheeled conveyance for use in leisure or sporting activities having a front steerable wheel (7) and two rear wheels (11). A user of the conveyance stands astride the conveyance on two spaced foot plates (10, 12) mounted respectively near the front wheel (7) and rear wheels (11). The front foot plate (12) is connected by cables (15) to the fork (6) of the conveyance carrying the front wheel (7) and is pivotally mounted to the frame (20) such that foot actuation by user operates through the cables (15) to steer the front wheel (7). Because of the provision of the pivotal foot plate (12), as well as steering the conveyance, it allows the user to execute additional bodily movements during movement over the ground such as those experienced when surfing in contrast to an ordinary skate board. In addition the construction allows the use of larger diameter wheels so that the conveyance can be deployed over rough terrain in contrast to known skate boards and can execute tighter turning circles than heretofore possible.

Description: STEERING ARRANGEMENT FOR WHEELED CONVEYANCE FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to a wheeled conveyance particularly for use in leisure or sporting activities and particularly to such a conveyance which may be steered along a predetermined path of travel over sloping ground by a person standing in an upright position on the conveyance. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION A wheeled conveyance which bears a relationship to that of the present invention is the known skate board. A skate board is steered by the rider tilting the board which, to assist steerage, may in some cases be provided with a special joint which turns the axis of the wheels relative to the longitudinal axis of the board. Skate boards, however, tend to have small wheels which means they cannot travel over rough ground such as grass and turning tight circles can be difficult. They therefore lack versatility and have a limited range of use. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art and to provide a wheeled conveyance which has greater manoeuvrability and which can be ridden quite readily over rough terrain. According to the present invention there is provided a wheeled conveyance for use in leisure or sporting activities comprising a support frame having a front and a rear wheel at least one of which is steerable to determine a path of travel of the conveyance, a pivotal foot operable member on the frame, and means linking the pivotal member to the steerable one of the wheels such that foot operation of the pivotal member by a user standing on the frame steers the conveyance. Preferably the front wheel is a single wheel with cables connecting the pivotal member to the wheel to steer the wheel during said foot operation of the foot plate. Advantageously, the single wheel is mounted in a fork rotatably mounted to the frame, with the cables connected to respective limbs of the fork, thereby to steer the single wheel. In a prefeιτed arrangement, two rear wheels are provided with the pivotal member in the form of a foot plate adjacent the front wheel and a second rigid foot plate adjacent the rear wheels to enable the user astride the conveyance. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which; Fig 1 is a plan view of an embodiment of the wheeled conveyance of the invention; Fig 2 is a side view of the wheeled conveyance of Fig 1; Fig 3 is an enlarged view of the front end of the wheeled conveyance of Fig 1; Fig 4 is an enlarged detail illustrating the foot plate mechanism of the wheeled conveyance of Fig 1; Fig 5 is a front end view of the wheeled conveyance of Fig 1 partly cut away to illustrate the action of the pivotal foot plate; Fig 6 is a side view of another embodiment of the wheeled conveyance according to the invention; and Fig 7 is a plan view of the conveyance of Fig 6. PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION The wheeled conveyance 1 shown in Figs 1 to 5, has a tubular steel frame 2 formed of spaced parallely arranged tubular steel tubes 3 which provide a generally horizontal platform on which a user U can stand in an astride upright position when operating the conveyance. The parallel steel tubes 3, as will be seen clearly in Figs 1 and 4, curve upwardly at the front end 4 of the frame 2 and finally merge at a rotatable bearing 5. A fork 6 carrying the front wheel 7 of the conveyance is mounted to the bearing 5. At the rear end 8 of the conveyance the tubes 3 rise to form a short inclined platform section 9 with the ends of the tubes which limit the inclined section 9 being joined by a shaft or axle 10 lying transverse to the longitudinal central axis A of the parallel tubes 3. A pair of rear wheels 11 are mounted on rotatable bearings at the respective ends of the shaft 10, the wheels 11 being spaced an equal distance to either side of the axis A. As will be seen, the axes of the front and rear wheels lie above the lowest point of the tubular steel frame 2 that is between the front end 4 and the inclined platform section 9. A pivotable foot plate 12 is mounted transversely across the parallel steel tubes 3 at the front of the conveyance as shown, and just in advance of the upward curving 4 of the steel tubes 3, and a rigid foot plate 12' at the rear of the conveyance positioned on the inclined section 9 of the steel tubes 3. The foot plate 12 is mounted on rubber bushes 13 secured to a steel cross plate 14 fastened to the underside of the steel tubes 3. The point of attachment of the bushes 13 to the foot plate 12 and the steel plate 14 lie on the central axis A of the frame of the conveyance, that is midway between the two steel tube 3. A steering cable 15 links each transverse end of the pivotal foot plate 12 to a respective limb of the fork 6 carrying the front wheel 7. Each cable 15 passes through a respective one of the steel tubes 3 at the front end 4 in guides 16 to be attached to the front fork 6, for example, by means of a metal plate 17 held securely in position against the fork 6 by self tapping screws 18. The guides 16 are shaped and/or positioned in the steel tubes to provide a change in direction of the cable run between the foot plate 12 and the guides 16, and the guides 16 and the fork 6, such that the pull on either of the cables by pivotal action of the foot plate 12 is used to maximum effect in rotating the fork and exercising consequent control over steerage. Thus it will be seen that in the exemplary embodiment shown, the cable run between the foot plate 12 and the guides 16 is substantially vertical and that between the guides 16 and the fork 6 is substantially horizontal. As shown in Fig 2, the conveyance is operated by means of a user standing astride the front and rear foot plates 12, 12'. Control of the conveyance during movement is carried out by pivotal actuation of the foot plate 12 by the foot of the user to steer the front wheel 7 through the cables 15 in whichever direction is desired. With reference now to the Figs 6 and 7 embodiment, the parallel steel tubes 3 of the earlier described embodiment are replaced by a single rigid bar 19 providing an entirely level platform section between the upwardly rising front section 20 of the rigid bar 19 and a rigid rear shaft 21 lying transverse to the axis of the bar 19. The end of the level platform section of the bar 19 is provided with a vertical extension piece 22 which carries the shaft 21 in a raised position such that the axes of rotation of the rear wheels 11 are above the level platform section as shown. The fork 6 is mounted to a cross bar 23 which rotates in a bearing 24 at the end of a rigid extension piece 25 attached to the end of the upwardly rising front section 20 of the bar 19. The front foot plate 12 is mounted on rubber bushings 13 as with the first embodiment, but this time secured to the rigid central bar 19 and the cables 15 extend from respective lateral end positions on the foot plate 12 through guides 26 attached to either side of the bar 19. Each of the cables 15 is then secured to a respective limb of the fork 6. The guides 26 are shaped to change the direction of the cable run between the foot plate 12 and the fork 6 such that the downward pull on the cable effected by pivoting the foot plate 12 is translated into a directional force acting to rotate the fork in an optimum manner taking into account the need for positive steerage and precise control. The rear foot plate 10 is at the level of the level platform section of the bar 19 as shown, and below the raised level of the front foot plate 12 mounted on the bushes 13. Foot grips (not shown) may be provided on the foot plates 12 and 12'. Other modifications to the preferred embodiments of the invention as described above will be apparent to one skilled in the art. For example, the front and rear wheels 7, 11 may have hubs made of plastics provided with pneumatic tyres. The front and rear foot plates 12, 12' may be made of wood, such as plywood, with a non-slip finish. By virtue of the fact that with the wheeled conveyance of the present invention, the wheels 7, 11 may be considerably larger than those of an ordinary skate board, for example, it is possible to operate on rougher terrain and execute tighter turns with greater control and at much greater speeds than heretofore possible with similar wheeled conveyances used in this area of sporting activity. Furthermore, the rotatable steering mechanism coupled with the ability to travel speeds and with greater control provides the user with the sensation of surfing in much the same way as that experienced on water. Also, in view of the greater wheel base than previously afforded by similar wheeled conveyances, the user can lean further during turning movements thereby increasing the limits of dynamic balance. While the conveyance as described with reference to the drawings has two rear wheels, it is envisaged that the conveyance would work equally well with a single front wheel and single rear wheel, although greater expertise would generally be required in maintaining control and movement.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A wheeled conveyance for use in leisure or sporting activities comprising a support frame having a front and a rear wheel at least one of which is steerable to determine a path of travel of the conveyance, a pivotal foot operable member on the frame, and means linking the pivotal member to the steerable one of the wheels such that foot operation of the pivotal member by a user standing on the frame steers the conveyance. 2. A wheeled conveyance as claimed in claim 1 wherein the front wheel is a single wheel with cables connecting the pivotal member to the wheel to steer the wheel during said foot operation of the pivotal member. 3. A wheeled conveyance as claimed in claim 2 wherein the single wheel is mounted in a fork rotatably mounted to the frame, with the cables connected to respective limbs of the fork, thereby to steer the single wheel. 4. A wheeled conveyance as claimed in any preceding claim wherein two rear wheels are provided with the pivotal member in the form of a foot plate being adjacent to the front wheel and a second foot plate rigidly mounted to the frame adjacent to the rear wheels. 5. A wheeled conveyance as claimed in claim 4 wherein the rigid foot plate is on an upwardly inclined section of the support frame. 6. A wheeled vehicle comprising an elongated base member, a pair of wheels at one end of the base member, a single wheel at the end of the base member remote from said pair of wheels, a rigid foot plate and a pivoted foot plate, said single wheel being rotatably secured to the base member, and a mechanical linkage connecting the pivoted foot plate to the rotatable wheel whereby pivotable movement of the pivoted foot plate rotates the wheel and steers the vehicle. 7. A wheeled conveyance substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Inventors: HICKMAN ALAN TREVOR, HORN ANDREW CHARLES HOLLOWAY, HICKMAN, ALAN, TREVOR, HORN, ANDREW, CHARLES, HOLLOWAY
Applicants: HICKMAN ALAN TREVOR, HORN ANDREW CHARLES HOLLOWAY, HICKMAN, ALAN, TREVOR, HORN, ANDREW, CHARLES, HOLLOWAY
Application year: 1994
Main classification: A63C17
IPC codes: A63C17